Niigata Institute of Technology

The origin of founding NIIT was based on the strong will of Niigata-based companies for establishing an educational institution by themselves where they could foster talented engineers in Niigata through on-the-job training. Their determination eventually formed an alliance of the institute foundation, and the fund was raised widely from public to private, including Kashiwazaki and most other cities, towns and villages in Niigata prefecture.

The number of supporitng companies reached to more than 500. Thus NIIT was founded by the great enthusiasm of the alliance companies, local government and many citizens of Niigata.

“Alliance of the NIIT foundation” was the impetus for founding this institution. Afterwards the name was changed to “NIIT Industrial-Academic Association” and is now firmly supporting the institute not only for internship and collaborative research but for recruiting our graduates. NIIT centers on an experience-based education in order to gain practical skills and creativity. Experiments and practices, supported by NIIT Industirial-Academic Association, are actively incorporated to practice the mastered knowledge to be a manufacturing expert.

NIIT Industrial-Academic Association supports NIIT students for their higher motivation by recognzing the students who got national / public qualifications, for example. It also facilitates interactive seminars introducing advanced technology of the member companies as a part of career education, and provides educational facilities for a better learning environment.

As a freshman, students extensively learn fundamental knowledge and skills of engineering. As a sophomore, they learn about areas peripheral to interested fields. From Junior onward, students deeply study the selected specialized fields. In addition, students can choose either to learn one specific field or to learn more than one field broadly. Furthermore, our Self-Evaluation System allows students to see their achievement and take an active step in their academic growth.

A tablet (iPad-mini) is lent to all students without charge. The campus-wide wireless LAN is provided for utilizing it in lectures, giving out lecture materials, and reading electronic textbooks and reference books. All lecture rooms are equipped with an electronic board and a projector. The wireless mirroring system is also available to encourage active discussion and improve communication skills. Some classes and research utilize professional simulation software which makes it possible to simulate structure, sound, piezoelectric, electrothermal, vibration, fluid and so on in detail.

One faculty staff is arranged as an adviser for about 5 students in each academic year. Each student regularly meets his / her adviser through "Engineering Seminar class". In addition, students can consult about academic and general problems at any time. Furthermore, Education Center provides individual support and tutoring to those who want to gain a solid understanding in basic subjects, such as mathematics, physics, chemistry, English, and information.

Since we had our first graduates in 1999, the average employment rate has been maintained more than 95%. The employment rates of 2015, 2016 and 2017 are 100%, which are not influenced by economic up and downs. Moreover, graduates' satisfaction degree for their employer is really high: 99% in 2015 and 97% in 2016. The number of recruitment exceeds 3,000, and these figures represent the positive educational outcomes of our Institution.

"Career Design" is offered as a regular course from the first year. This class challenges students to consider what kind of skills and knowledge they need to acquire. In addition, group work and role-play are effectively implemented in order to develop communication and presentation skills needed as a professional. Students also gain expertise as well as generic skills through the career education by the experienced lecturers.

Our collaboration with the NIIT Industrial-Academic Association offers rich opportunities to contact with member companies, including "Industry research" and "Joint corporate briefing sessions". For individual support, "Career Portfolio System" is adopted so that students and university staffs can share information regarding students' job hunting process. With this system, faculty members and career administrators work together to provide job placement and specific job hunting guidance for each student.